Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania: Power, Data Centers and the Local Economy
Home to Scranton, Dunmore and South Abington Township
Lackawanna County is one of the places pushing back on the data center build-out. Lackawanna County is home to Scranton, Dunmore, South Abington Township and Carbondale. The Moratorium Tracker holds 2 local measures here (2 in force); the latest is “Six-month data center moratorium”. 1 project is on the Delay Watchlist, including Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus. Its power plants have 1,598 MW of capacity, 99% of it natural gas. Construction employs 3,797, up 6.1% since 2019.
Cities and towns in Lackawanna County
Lackawanna County is home to Scranton, Dunmore, South Abington Township and Carbondale.
And 16 smaller places.
Unincorporated communities (governed by the county): Big Bass Lake, Chinchilla, Eagle Lake, Glenburn, Mount Cobb, Simpson, Waverly.
Residents are 2025 Census estimates for the part of each city, town or township inside this county. Census publishes no annual estimate for unincorporated communities.
What changed in Lackawanna County
1st = the most. Ranks cover counties with a value on record.
| Measure | Then | Now | Change | Rank in Pennsylvania |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (2020 → 2025) | 215,529 | 216,502 | ▲ 0.5% | 17th of 67 by size |
| Total jobs (2019 → 2025) | 97,131 | 98,798 | ▲ 1.7% | 17th of 67 by growth |
| Average annual pay (2019 → 2025) | $43,120 | $55,423 | ▲ 28.5% | — |
| Construction jobs (2019 → 2025) | 3,578 | 3,797 | ▲ 6.1% | 26th of 62 by growth |
| Electrical contractor jobs (2019 → 2025) | 612 | 548 | ▼ 10.5% | — |
| Electric utility jobs (2019 → 2025) | 207 | 222 | ▲ 7.2% | — |
| Data processing and hosting jobs (2019 → 2025) | 40 | 10 | ▼ 75.0% | — |
| Unemployment rate (2019 → August 2026) | 4.9% | 4.6% | ▼ 0.3pts | — |
| Generating capacity added since 2019 | — | 6 MW | — | |
| Generating capacity retired since 2019 | — | 6 MW | — |
6 MW has retired here since 2019, including Keystone Recovery (other technologies, 6 MW, 2020). 6 MW of that came online in 2019 or later, mostly petroleum. Employers here counted 98,798 jobs in 2025, up 1.7% from 2019. PPL Electric Utilities Corp is the largest utility serving Lackawanna County, one of 4 with territory here. Its residential customers paid an average 16.99¢/kWh in 2024, above the 16.30¢ median for Pennsylvania utilities. Unemployment was 4.6% in August 2026, against 4.9% in 2019. Electrical contractors employ 548, down 10.5% since 2019 against up 5.3% statewide, at an average $84,558 a year. 216,502 people live here, up 0.5% since 2020.
Who powers Lackawanna County
Net change in operating capacity since 2019: +1 MW. Colors follow the fuel legend above.
Utilities with service territory in Lackawanna County
| Utility | Ownership | Service | Residential customers (systemwide) | Residential price, 2024 | Commercial share of sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PPL Electric Utilities Corp | Investor Owned | Bundled | 1,295,883 | 16.99¢ | 19% |
| Claverack Rural Elec Coop Inc | Cooperative | Bundled | 16,742 | 18.25¢ | 22% |
| Borough of Blakely - (PA) | — | — | — | — | — |
| Borough of Olyphant - (PA) | — | — | — | — | — |
Customer counts, prices and sales shares cover each utility's whole system in the state, not only this county. Commercial sales include data centers.
Operating power plants 4
| Technology | Capacity | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Natural gas | 1,582 MW | 99% |
| Other technologies | 9 MW | 1% |
| Petroleum | 5 MW | 0% |
| Solar | 1 MW | 0% |
| Largest plants | Owner | Technology | MW | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lackawanna Energy Center | Invenergy Services LLC | Natural gas | 1,498 MW | 2018 |
| Archbald Power Station | PEI Power Corp | Natural gas | 93 MW | 1988 |
| Blakely (PA) RTO BTM | American Mun Power-Ohio, Inc | Petroleum | 5 MW | 2022 |
| LL Scranton PA | Madison Energy Investments LLC | Solar | 1 MW | 2024 |
Retired since 2019
| Plant | Technology | MW | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keystone Recovery | Other technologies | 6 MW | 2020 |
The Lackawanna County labor market
| Industry (2025) | Jobs | Average pay | Concentration vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All industries | 98,798 | $55,423 | 1.00 |
| Construction | 3,797 | $78,189 | 0.73 |
| Electrical contractors | 548 | $84,558 | 0.77 |
| Electric utilities | 222 | $126,539 | 0.83 |
| Data processing and hosting | 10 | $48,165 | 0.03 |
Concentration is the BLS location quotient: 1.0 means the industry holds the same share of local jobs as it does nationally. Industry rows count private employers; cells BLS suppresses are left out.
Data centers and local rules in Lackawanna County
Local measures 2
| Measure | Status | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Six-month data center moratorium | In force | 2026-04 | |
| Denial of Breaker Street data center campus | In force | 2025-12 |
Delay Watchlist 1
| Project | Status | Cause | MW | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildcat Ridge Data Center Campus | pending review | — |
Lackawanna County and its neighbors
Of the 5 counties that border Lackawanna County, Luzerne County carries the most build-out activity: data centers, planned generation and operating plants combined.
| County | Population | Jobs since 2019 | Operating MW | Planned MW | Data centers | Local measures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lackawanna County | 216,502 | ▲ 1.7% | 1,598 MW | — | — | 2 |
| Luzerne County | 332,126 | ▼ 0.4% | 4,044 MW | 21 MW | 5 | 1 |
| Monroe County | 167,179 | ▼ 0.4% | 23 MW | — | — | — |
| Susquehanna County | 38,237 | ▼ 6.9% | 22 MW | — | — | — |
| Wayne County | 51,703 | ▲ 4.3% | 104 MW | 3 MW | — | 1 |
| Wyoming County | 25,790 | ▼ 0.8% | 283 MW | — | — | — |
More of Pennsylvania
Lackawanna County, answered from the record
Who provides electricity in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania?
4 utilities have service territory in Lackawanna County in the EIA-861 2024 report: PPL Electric Utilities Corp, Claverack Rural Elec Coop Inc, Borough of Blakely - (PA), Borough of Olyphant - (PA). The largest, PPL Electric Utilities Corp, charged residential customers 16.99¢/kWh on average in 2024.
What county is Scranton, PA in?
Scranton is in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. About 75,514 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What county is Dunmore, PA in?
Dunmore is in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. About 14,249 people live there (2025 Census estimate).
What power plants are in Lackawanna County?
4 operating plants with 1,598 MW of capacity. The largest is Lackawanna Energy Center (1,498 MW, natural gas).
Are there data centers in Lackawanna County?
The SAVRN Data Center Map has no data center in Lackawanna County. The nearest activity on record is next door in Luzerne County.
Is Lackawanna County adding jobs?
Employers counted 98,798 jobs in 2025 against 97,131 in 2019 (+1.7%, BLS QCEW). Construction went from 3,578 to 3,797.
Does Lackawanna County have a data center moratorium?
The SAVRN Moratorium Tracker holds 2 local measures for Lackawanna County, 2 in force.